- UBC Insiders - http://ubcinsiders.ca -
Issue of the Day (morning): Student Fees
Posted By Tim Louman-Gardiner On January 20, 2007 @ 12:49 pm In Elections,Features | Comments Disabled
I was going to spend a good chunk of today going through candidates’ platforms. But very few are up, and those that I have I’m not supposed to talk about yet. So I won’t.
But there is one issue that we feel is kinda important, and probably worth considering. Which is that of AMS student fees. We think they’re probably a wee bit too low.
Consider the following:
If the per-student fee had been tied to inflation at its inception, UBC students’ fees to the AMS would be almost $200 by now. But they’re not. Instead, new, direct-pay fees are added, including Athletics and Recreation fees, the U-Pass, etc. So now students are paying several different fees, most of which grow with inflation, but the AMS one doesn’t. Which puts a financial crunch on the AMS, and hurts sustainable growth.
However, a fee increase has to be passed by referendum, which historically runs into problems with quorum. And nobody likes raising their fees. So…
It’s worth noting that both VP Finance candidates are, in principle, in favor of indexing student fees to inflati0n, and both raise practical concerns about the referendum.
Article printed from UBC Insiders: http://ubcinsiders.ca
URL to article: http://ubcinsiders.ca/2007/01/issue-of-the-day-morning-student-fees-2/
Click here to print.
Copyright © 2010 ubcinsiders.ca. Some rights reserved.